A hot meal a too much to ask for

I weigh my food. Have been for years, so I can be a stickler when it comes to sharing my food.

Yeah yeah, I know. If I don’t share, how can I teach my kid to? But in my defense, I never shared my food prior to having a child nor do I eat off of other people’s plates. It’s been a pet peeve of mine for…..I dunno….my whole life? So imagine what was going through my head in the below scenario.

Picture it: in the kitchen 2019. I’m getting food out to make breakfast and start measuring for myself.
“Boden, do you want any eggs?”
“No thank you Mamma.”
So I proceed with measuring out my meal and while cooking it, I ask again,
“Boden, are you sure you don’t want any eggs?”
“I said no thank you Mamma!”
My egg white are made, whole grain rice cakes with a serving of Nutella and 145g of sliced strawberries.
I sit down to eat.
“Mamma, I want some eggs. I like how they smell.”

So of course, I’m not going to tell my son he can’t eat eggs. So I leave my food on the table while I whip up some for him.

Raise your right hand if you feel my pain?

Cookie Meditation

Meditation comes in all forms.  I by no means am an expert in meditation but I’m trying to learn!  According to Wikipedia, “Meditation is a practice where an individual uses a technique, such as focusing their mind on a particular object, thought or activity, to achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm state.”

You know how at the end of yoga class when everyone is laying on their backs and the teacher is reading some touchy-feely passage from her book?

Well, I’m deaf so that doesn’t really apply to me.

So when I was on my recent trip to New Mexico last week with my ladies, at the end of the class I was determined to quiet my mind and meditate for those last 15 minutes.  Here is what went down:

*Out of the blue I had the sensation of the best damn sugar cookie I ever bit into with big sugar crystals on top*
(thinking to myself)
“Where the hell did I get that cookie?  What makes that sugar cookie hard and the chocolate chip cookies so soft?  Is it baking soda?  Baking powder?  Oh man, Springerle cookies.   So chewy.  I wonder how hard those are to make?  I might be better off just buying them.   I bet Jody knows. Plus I need the pin to roll them out.”

Needless to say, when I “woke up” I was relaxed and happy.  I mean c’mon, I meditated about cookies!!

Just add water

It’s really that simple.  To make bone broth all you need is bones and water.  I went to the meat counter at my grocery store this morning because I didn’t see any bones on the shelves.  Not all grocery stores do anyway.  I asked, he delivered!  He went in the back where all the bones were and cut one in half so if fits in my pot.

The best part is that it cost less than $4.00!

I get an ENTIRE pot of bone broth for less than $4.00!

I had some carrots and onions at home so I just cut them in half and put them in the pot with a splash of vinegar.  2 hours later my house is smelling fantastic!

“Vinegar?!” you say.  Yes vinegar. Using an acid, like vinegar, helps break down the collagen and connective tissues.

Bone Broth is all the rage right now for their health benefits: from weight loss, joint health and improving their skin.   Personally, I’m going to joint health and improving my skin but if I lose some weight in the mine-toon, I won’t complain.

Once this is done, I fill up a Pendleton mug and sprinkle a dash of “Slap Ya Mama” seasoning on top.  Voila!  A spicy hug in a mug.

Now get your cauldron out and start boiling!  You can thank me later.

Happy Halloween!

 

Elbow Drippin’ Good

We went peach pickin!  Last time I went, I was wearing the little man.  So that means, 3 years ago.  Too long.  I had wanted to go earlier this year but patience is virtue.  If you go too soon, they are hard and, well, dry.  Wait until later in the season and they are plump, ripe and juicy!

This trip wasn’t planned honestly.  It’s not often I plan anything really.  I never know what mood the little dude will be in.  I never know what mood *I* will be in.  And my tip to parents everywhere, never, EVER, tell your kid what your plans are.  Oh dear me.  Keep it a surprise.  I cannot tell you how many times I told B where we were going and then it was either cancelled or a change of plans.  He doesn’t understand what a “change of plans” means.

I also made the mistake of tell him last week that I signed him up for soccer which starts on 9/15.  Nope.  He wants to go now.  Right now.  So until he has a better grip on time and the calendar, everything is a surprise or an adventure.

So back to the peaches……

Been Pinteresting some recipes and am super excited.  I don’t have enough to play with the whole canning and freezing thing.  (I kick myself in the butt everyday for not wanting to learn from my Daddy)  Choices are grilled peaches, peach salsa and peach pizza.  Stay tuned…..

 

 

Golden Milk and Zucchini Boats…but not together

It’s getting chilly!  I know summer isn’t over yet and I expect it to heat up again but I’m enjoying it while it lasts.  It’s tricky this time of year; you whip out your favorite sweatpants in the morning but you run the risk of being a bit overdressed when it heats up around lunchtime.

We’ve been hitting up as many farmers markets as we can lately.  Food inspiration for me and games for the little dude.  I have been craving beets but haven’t seen them anywhere.  Must not be in season yet.  Next on my crave list was zucchini boats.

 

Not too shabby.  Not too shabby at all.  I had a few vegetables I needed to clean out of the fridge before they went bad so I sautéed some onion, garlic, yellow pepper and mushroom.  Added some ground chicken, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper.  Filled each “boat” then topped with cheese. 400* for 30 minutes.

On mine I added avocado and salsa right before I served it.  The little guy got picky and refused to eat it.  I managed to convince him to at least eat the middle part.  He eats plenty of veggies, needed to get some more protein in him.

I’m happy.  It’s not often I perfect a recipe but I did.  I made the most fantastic Golden Milk.  And it’s not putting a dent in my macros either.

Heat on the stove; 2 C of almond milk, 1.4 tsp turmeric, 1 T honey, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ground ginger, 1 tsp vanilla extract.

And serve.

Oh my.  Only downside of this is that I drink it too fast.  Next up, Pumpkin Spice Golden Milk.

Everyone knows the benefits of working out; cardiovascular health, weight loss, reduced stress levels….etc etc.  You’ve heard it over and over.  I actually see it as more than just the obvious.

Writers block at work?  Go workout.

Cant stop snacking? (for those that work from home)  Go workout.

Restless?  Go workout.

Time to kill between meetings and don’t want to do housework?  Go workout.

Upset?  Go workout.

Stuck on a problem?  Go workout.

I’m in marketing and anytime I’m stuck on a problem, need ideas or get my creative juices flowing; I go work out.  (ideas actually come to me in the shower too)

If I ever owned a business, or at least managed one, I would probably replace one of the conference room tables with treadmills.

Now time to put on my mommy hat.  Make breakfast, pack a lunch and get this little man to school.  Happy Fri-YAY!

 

 

 

Farmers Market-ing

You hear every year how some struggle with food and weight over the holidays. Party after party after party.  Unfortunately for me, or rather fortunately, I am not popular so I don’t get invited to holiday parties.

This year was the first time I had heard of people struggling with their weight during the summertime because of all the cookouts and BBQs.  Again, no invites here.  *shrug*  Even if I was, I’m not a fan of eating when I’m hot.   Thanks but no thanks. “Jar of Happy” said we have to go on a picnic and I’m holding onto that one until it’s cooler out there.

Then I realized where I do struggle.  At the farmers markets!  I want it ALL!  Take today for example; there were several vendors with fresh cheese, several bakeries, a GREEK food truck (I had to walk away) and the cutest set up of a small fishing boat displaying all the fresh seafood.

I. want. it. all.

Granted the seafood is healthy but I wasn’t going to be home for a few hours so I couldn’t get anything.  The cheese, cookies and baklava however would not have made it to the car.

Instead, I have started taking their business cards and flyers and will hit up their storefront either when I have a cheat day or can fit it in my macros.  Problem solved.

I don’t think the seafood guy has a store though.  So I just might have to head back over there and eat straight from the boat for dinner.

Sorry no picture.  I was too busy admiring all the goodies!  Use your imagination.

Too much of a good thing

We had a party.

One of my many flaws is that there are 2 times I get into a “clean the fridge” mentality. And by “clean the fridge” I mean eat everything.  The first instance is before I travel and I don’t want my food to spoil.  There is not much else I cannot stand more than rotten food.

The 2nd scenario is when I have a fridge full of all the leftover food from a party and I don’t want it to spoil either.  My husband isn’t a big leftover eater.  The little dude is getting there; he works on the raw veggies.  But after yesterdays party I have probably 40 pounds of cooked meet in the fridge.  (a slight exaggeration but damn it sure feels like it!) A tray of salad, trays of fruit and veggies, macaroni salad, potato salad, cookies, ice cream……let’s just stop there.

The meats, salad, fruits and veggies are clearly what I’m focused on.  Ice cream and cookies are in the freezer.  They are safe.  The macaroni and potato salad and just go ahead and rot.  I’m not a fan of those. Sorry, not sorry.

I’m fairly confident that you are muttering to yourself, “So what?  She binges on the healthy stuff”.  Well guess what?  There is such thing as too much healthy food.  You CAN have too many (good) carbs, too much (good) fat and too much protein.

Never did I think I would see this; bingeing in bed with a tray of salad?

 

Don’t knock my eggs…

Remember in “Forest Gump” when they went on and on and on about things you can do with shrimp?  I think the exact same thing applies to eggs.  You’ve got hard boiled, scrambled, fried (sunny side up, over easy or over hard) or poached.  Heck, you can be one of those crazies that adds a raw egg to their smoothie.

You can mix ’em with a few ingredients and make cake or cookies, a hollandaise sauce, mayonnaise, Instead of alfredo, you can add an egg directly to hot pasta and toss with parmesan to make it creamy.  They are so versatile!

My favorite way to eat them will get a double-take.  Bear with me.

Scrambled egg white (with NO seasoning) on top of a sweet rice cake with peanut butter.  Why does it work?  Because egg whites are a blank canvas.  They can go either way; sweet or savory.

Don’t knock it til you try it.

Not all calories are created equal

Take a look at these 2 pictures: 400g of cherries and a serving (2T) of peanut butter.  Which one has less calorie?  Which one is healthier?

If you guessed cherries, you are wrong.

If you guessed peanut butter, you are also wrong.

Both are 200 calories.  So then what’s the difference?  MACROS!

Both are perfectly healthy for a balanced diet.  The cherries are predominantly carbs while the peanut butter is mostly fat.  Both can fit into your meal plan, assuming you aren’t keto.  But lets not go there please.

This is why I love tracking my macros and don’t give 2 sh*ts about calories.  Many people preach calories in versus calories out which I believe to be true to an extent.  I feel so much better with a diet of balance carbs, fats and proteins compared to XX number of calories a day of “whatever”.

True story, when I was in middle school, one summer I tried eating 1200 calories a day of strawberry fruit bars (popsicles) and ice cream sandwiches.  It didn’t work.

Beach Days and Pizza Nights

Been having a little more fun in the kitchen lately.  I don’t know if it’s the house, the town or what but I hope it stays this way!  Many people want more money for travel, clothes, and nice things. I want more money to experience different foods!

(Let this serve as a reminder to pick back up on planning my food/running centric 40th birthday trip)

After we had an last minute beach day, because the “Jar of Happy” told us to.  (That’s the next post)  We headed home and I made portabella pizzas.  Not because I’m low carb or anything but because I saw some beautiful portabellas in the store and it was the first thing I thought to do with it.

This here is the recipe I followed.  https://cafedelites.com/portobello-pizzas/ Because I give credit where credit is due

Seriously, who doesn’t love a 10 minute dinner?  15 TOPS when you include prep.  This easily fit my macros including the one that my son didn’t eat.  What did I expect?  The kid loves pizza and who am I to mess with it?  If it’s not on crust, he doesn’t touch it.

More for me!